1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a system and method for personalizing an injection treatment for administering pharmaceutical agents to a patient.
2. Background of the Art
Americans are increasingly aware of the health environment, available drugs, and information technology. They demand that disease prevention and treatment should be tailored for the individual's need, where possible.
There is a greater benefit to administer injectable combinations of pharmaceutical agents such as vitamins, growth hormones, glucosamine, omega-3 fatty acids, insulin and other such agents. When a medication is administered orally, the bioavailability (i.e., the fraction of the ingested dose which is actually absorbed) of such agents significantly decreases due to incomplete absorption and first-pass metabolism, which may vary from patient to patient. However, the bioavailability of agents administered intravenously can be up to 100%. Also, it is reported that 15% of the population cannot properly absorb vitamins and other oral medications if administered orally. Moreover, since the medication requirements can vary from patient to patient, it is necessary to develop a personalized formulation of pharmaceutical agents in an injection to meet the needs of the patent.
British researchers say tumors begin to shrivel within 24 hours of injecting a vitamin E extract into patients. After ten days the tumors have almost disappeared According to Jane Higdon, Ph.D. of Oregon State University, there is currently no evidence in humans that taking oral alpha-tocopheryl succinate supplements delivers alpha-tocopheryl succinate to tissues Research has suggested that the bioavailability of Vitamin E from natural sources is twice that of synthetic sources. Furthermore, it is important to note that studies of patients with fat malabsorption have shown that vitamin E absorption requires normal digestive processes involved in the absorption of dietary fats. Linking oral vitamin E ingestion to the proper absorption of dietary fats complicates matters because the amounts and forms of fat required for optimal vitamin E absorption are unknown.
Similarly, gastrointestinal absorption of vitamin B12 depends on the presence of sufficient intrinsic factor and calcium ions. While oral absorption is considered too unreliable in patients with pernicious anemia or other conditions, an injection of vitamin B12 may prevent the progression of neurologic damage in severe cases. Parenteral administration of vitamin B12 treat a variety of conditions including pernicious anema, age related vitamin B12 deficiencies, lessens severity of Alzheimer's disease, reverse/contain cases of senile dementia, therapeutic value in treating Autism/ADD, and Multiple Sclerosis. Reportedly, 94% of children with symptomatic of autism spectrum disorders respond to Methyl-B12 therapy (vitamin B12 injections).
Various systems are known for compounding various pharmaceutical admixtures in a single container. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,610,115, 7,194,336, 7,171,992, 6,975,924, 6,951,228, 5,697,407, 5,431,202, 5,085,256, 5,040,699, 4,922,975, 4,789,014, 4,653,010, 4,513,796, and 4,467,844 for various fluid transfer and compounding systems.
However, there is a significant pharmacoeconomic gap between prescription drug treatments with pharmaceutical agents and general self-care with currently available pharmaceuticals. What is needed is a system usable in a physician's office or clinic to enable a personalized treatment of patients with individually compounded admixtures of pharmaceuticals, biologics, or injectables either intravenously (IV), intramuscularly (IM) or subcutaneously. Further needed is a system incorporating the latest information technology employing, for example, wireless, software, and/or secured Internet based communication systems.